About

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The Kickstarter campaign has ended, but please sign up here to get more info on when and where The Hug will become available. Thanks and big hugs to all our pledgers!

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Need a Hug?

What is a healthy life to you? Is it being able to perform better at school, the gym, or even the office? Is it minimizing risks of different ailments? Or is it just simply feeling better every day?

Most people simply don’t drink enough water and are constantly dehydrated without even realising it. Not only does dehydration decrease mental and physical performance, but it also makes us more likely to get sick.

The Hug is a convenient solution that helps you stay properly hydrated. It consists of a sensor band and a companion iOS app. Just slip The Hug sensor around pretty much any water bottle and connect it to an iOS device.

Using motion data and algorithms, The Hug sensor tracks the amount of water you drink, giving you automatic reminders via the sensor band and the iOS app to make sure you maintain optimal hydration. Think of it as your personal hydration coach, aiming to change your hydration habits!

The Hug makes the office look so much nicer. But more importantly, being properly hydrated can help you finish those nasty excel sheets!

“The Hug is an innovative device that is easy to use, helping to track daily water intakes. This is invaluable given that most of us don’t drink enough water which can often lead us feeling tired, fatigued and not performing at our best - both in body and mind. The Hug has been carefully designed taking latest scientific evidence on board which makes it a great product.”

Why is hydration so important?

Exercise, nutrition and sleep are naturally important factors in a healthy lifestyle. Hydration is part of this equation and directly impacts all the other categories. In theory, hydration is easy, yet a big portion of people (i.e. 43% of Americans) simply don't drink enough water every day.

Benefits of water. Recognise yourself? Perhaps it's about time to get The Hug?

How does The Hug work?

The Hug is a solution consisting of a sensor band that is slipped around your water bottle, and a companion mobile app that coaches you towards optimal hydration. Popular wearable devices have been able to change their users' exercise and sleep habits by offering effortless data tracking, motivational feedback and results. The Hug aims to change your hydration habits and help you lead a healthier, more active life.

We are on the forefront of developing a sensor for indirect liquid intake tracking. Using accelerometer technology and algorithms to learn the amount of liquid that the user drinks from the bottle, we indirectly measure your fluid consumption. The sensor uses accelerometer data to track specific movements related to drinking, and our algorithm learns to recognize specific patterns unique to your drinking habits. The algorithm filters out other movements, so you don't have to worry about the times the bottle is in your gym bag as you're running to make the next train.

The Hug sensor and algorithm within track specific drinking-related movements.

The Hug sensor embraces your bottle

The Hug sensor is a flexible band which fits around nearly any water bottle. It monitors the amount of water (or any other liquid) you drink from the bottle and sends this data to an iOS application.

The Hug sensor band. (note: The Charcoal Grey colour will be somewhat lighter in final manufactured Hugs than the dark grey colour of this prototype).

The Hug sensor...

...fits your existing bottles. The Hug sensor fits most bottles, so you can use it with the one you already have. Bottle material does not make a difference (metal, plastic, glass...everything goes), but currently the sensor is optimized for bottles with a diameter of 2.16"-3.14" inches (55-80 millimeters) and an approximate volume of 13-25 fl oz (400-750 millilitres).

...connects to iPhone and the like. Works with your favorite iOS devices (iPhone 4s/5/5s, iPad Mini 3rd gen and up, iPod Touch 5th generation and up). The Hug does not have an Android app yet, and for now the focus is on iOS.

...is charged by USB. The sensor juices up via micro USB - but don't worry, there is no need to plug your it in every day, as the current prototypes last up to a full week. By the time we ship we expect this to be even greater.

The Hug sensor features

The Hug app lives in your iPhone

The Hug iOS app. Left: Main dashboard. Right: Settings screen.

The Hug app adjusts Your personal hydration goal.

The Hug application...

...knows you and your needs. Based on your stats (weight, age, gender etc), it calculates an optimal "base rate" for your hydration. It also takes into account the local climate (temperature). The hotter it gets, the more you need to drink.

...pushes you on the right track. The app follows your hydration status, and sends push notifications in case you're not keeping up with the optimal rate. Notification intervals are adjustable to your own preferences.

...receives drink data automatically. The Hug sensor sends drinking data to the app, so that you don't have to do manual inputs.

...connects with other apps you like. The Hug App links with FitBit and RunKeeper APIs, so that you know how much to drink to replenish your body after exercising. More connected apps are on the way! The Hug API is under development, so that other applications can benefit from our hydration insights.

...shows you relevant data. You are able to view your hydration/activity history on a visual interface. It's motivating to know how well you've been doing in the past!

...supports both imperial and metric systems. You can choose either US units or the European system. We don't take sides here!

...doesn't cost a dime. Download The Hug application for free from the AppStore when you receive The Hug band. It will be available well in advance before the sensors ship.

The Hug sensor links with a companion iOS app to coach you towards optimal hydration. Stylish outfits not included (maybe for v2.0?).

Pledge categories

Our Kickstarter backers have the opportunity to claim one of the first Hugs at a price that is well below MSRP.

Plenty of options to choose from, claim The Hug today!

Meet the team

The Caktus founding team consists of a group of dudes from Finland. Panu takes care of the business aspect, Heikki is the electronics-whiz, Tappi turns napkin sketches into tangible products and Olli handles mobile development. Most of us have founded companies before and some of Tappi's products are currently in the market (i.e. Wishbhone). On the extended team we also have Tiambi (business development) in the Netherlands and David (strategy) in the US helping out.

In the spring of 2013 Caktus was accepted into a startup accelerator program in the US, and the founders moved over to NYC for the program. When the program ended, the team moved back to Finland, went lean and set its sights on a Kickstarter campaign. To this end, we've been working on a solution for hydration problems for well over a year, and now we're finally ready to turn to YOU to help make The Hug real. Please claim your own Hug and don't forget to tell your friends and family to do the same!

The Caktus co-founders in September 2013, showcasing their first functional prototypes.

Our Journey

The origin of The Hug lies in our own stories of personal hydration problems.

Panu, our CEO noticed that he was often powerless and tired – whether at the gym, in the outdoors, or at the office and he couldn't figure out why. It took the insight of a loved one, namely his girlfriend, to tell him it was probably because he was not drinking enough water. And you know what? She was absolutely right. Panu noticed a significant change in his energy levels on the days he kept up with hydration. Training at the gym was more efficient, concentration improved and he did not feel so tired at the office.

COO Tappi loves coffee to the detriment of all else. But what began to happen is that he noticed the same problems that Panu had overcome, added with constant headaches. Tappi slowly switched from a cup of joe to a cup of H2O and noticed a change right away. To his surprise, he was feeling more energised despite drinking less coffee!

After talking to a lot of people, the guys realized that they were not the only ones struggling with problems caused by dehydration. People complained of dry skin, tension, bad moods etc. Quite a few also had ailments (i.e. kidney stones) that would have required them to drink more water. The strange thing was that people were often aware that they did not drink enough water and knew how it affected them. We decided to develop a product that can help coach people towards balanced hydration and change their hydration habits. So, now YOU have the chance to be among the very first to use The Hug and take those important steps towards healthy hydration!

Over the past 14 months, we've built a handful of functional prototypes, but now we finally have a prototype ready that allows manufacturing of the very first batch of The Hug hardware. First version of the iOS app has been ready for a while, functional and tested by users in closed Alpha using Testflight. However, we are working on a new app design to improve usability. We have all the core functionality in the algorithm, but are constantly tweaking it further as we collect more data. Our prototypes out in the field are collecting data to help us identify different drinking behavior and classify movement into non-drinking (i.e. bottle in transport etc) and drinking events. At the beginning of September we'll send out a prototype batch of 100 Hugs to a corporate healthcare pilot in Mexico.

The Caktus team has come a long way to present you The Hug we have today!

Our Partners

Since we're a small startup, we teamed up with a larger player to ensure that our first customers receive a quality product. We chose Dragon Innovation to help us with manufacturing-related issues. They have reviewed our design, manufacturability and reliability and assisted in estimating the cost and minimum funding threshold. In short, The Hug is vetted by the pros (see the certificate here). Previously Dragon Innovation has worked with over 100 companies, including hardware prodigies such as Shifteo, MakerBot and Scout.

-Material and
casings: The band consists of two casings, the actual band itself (Elastosil
silicone), the spring part (Delrin plastic) and the electronics housing (ABS plastic).
The design allows for easy, no-hassle detaching of the electronics component for
recharging.

-Included: Micro USB
charging cable

-Necessary certifications (FCC, CE) are budgeted and will be acquired after a successful campaign

-Color: Charcoal Grey/White

-The Hug app currently works works in iOS only. Depending on the success of the Kickstarter campaign, we might start developing an app for Android as well ;)

Explosion view of The Hug casings.

Manufacturing Project Schedule

August 2014: Kickstarter takes off, manufacturers lined up.

September 2014: Kickstarter campaign closes. Production prototype refining and testing. New version of API functionality under development.

November 2014: Decision on the final manufacturer. Finalizing production prototype, tooling begins.

December 2014: Sample production of hardware, running FCC and CE tests. The Hug app in App Store.

January 2015: Manufacturing begins, test runs.

February 2015: Manufacturing and assembly

March 2015: Shipping to YOU!

Risks and challenges

Hardware is hard, and it would be naïve to think a project like this would go smoothly without glitches from beginning to end. Our goal is to deliver a high-quality product to our backers within the promised timeframe. We know that problems will arise, but will do our best to mitigate them early on. What follows below is a list of likely challenges and the actions that we have already taken to tackle them before they get get a chance to mess things up. We have previous experience with a Kickstarter hardware project (though with way less components) all the way from concepting to delivering the final product to the satisfied pledgers, so to some extent we can say that we've been here before.

Luckily we have Dragon Innovation as our manufacturing partner. They have thoroughly vetted The Hug and made sure it can be manufactured thorough a successful campaign. And yes, the good people at Dragon sure know their game; it actually took about three months for them to be satisfied and finally give us the green light!

-Manufacturing: Devices containing both electronics as well as physical casing require different manufacturers. Having different manufacturers adds complexity into the process as well as potentially unforeseen problems related to delivery times and quality issues. We have been in contact with various manufacturers both in the US and Europe, and have made sure that we have options ready should issues arise.

-Sourcing: We are using somewhat standard stuff when it comes to the electronic components, and we have already sourced several alternative providers. However, we are prepared for delays if we need to suddenly change providers.

-Shipping: We are expecting most of our orders to come from the US, but we know to expect some from Europe as well. At the moment we have a side office in Finland, which makes it a lot easier for us to coordinate and organise the logistics issues on the Old Continent. This way we hope to be able to deliver to our international backers as smoothly as possible.

Support

Select this reward

Pledge $5 or more
About $5

Virtual High-Five on Twitter and your name on our website! Our designer Tappi MIGHT do a thank you -dance, but we can't promise that for sure yet. Thanks for supporting us. You will be added to our backer list and receive all the product updates sent to backers.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 15 or more
About $15

THE HALL OF FAME. Pitch in $15 or more and send over a photo of you (or any photo, if you’re into playing pranks on us!) and we’ll pin them on the office wall. The Wall of Fame (or shame) is seen by everyone who visits our office, forever. And we get to see it, every day, also forever.
Forever is as long as we have an office. Let’s hope it’s really until end of times! Pledge also includes hi5, name on website and backer status.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $59 or more
About $59

EARLY BIRD! The very first 80 backers get The Hug on a very dehydrated price. This pledge includes The Hug sensor, USB charge cable and shipping in the US. This is a steal! Sensor band color: Charcoal Grey/White. Pledge also includes name on our website.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $65 or more
About $65

THIRSTY BIRD! Missed the early bird? No problem, this pledge category is for you. Get The Hug sensor, USB charge cable and free shipping in the US. Yay! Sensor band color: Charcoal Grey/White. Pledge also includes name on our website.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $69 or more
About $69

I WANT A HUG! Sure, we'll give you The Hug on a special Kickstarter price, well below the future retail price. Includes The Hug sensor, USB charge cable and free shipping in the US. Sensor band color: Charcoal Grey/White. Pledge also includes Hall of Fame -photo and name on our website.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $128 or more
About $128

THE THIRSTY COUPLE. Get two Hugs, perfect for keeping yourself and that significant other properly hydrated. Includes two Hug Sensors, USB charge cables and shipping in the US. Sensor band color: Charcoal Grey/White. Pledge also includes Hall of Fame -photo and name on our website.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $134 or more
About $134

THE LATE COUPLE. Get two Hugs, perfect for keeping yourself and that significant other properly hydrated. Includes two Hug Sensors, USB charge cables and shipping in the US. Sensor band color: Charcoal Grey/White. Pledge also includes Hall of Fame -photo and name on our website.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $310 or more
About $310

THE FAMILY HUG. This is the best way to make sure your loved ones stay properly hydrated. Perhaps one for Grandpa as well? Includes five Hugs, USB charge cables and shipping in the US. Sensor band color: Charcoal Grey/White. Pledge also includes Hall of Fame -photo and name on our website.